The future of the Laurel Elementary School building remains undecided after a discussion between county commissioners and a nascent nonprofit hoping to take possession of the facility. Discussion during an August 6 meeting at A-B Tech focused on options the county has at its disposal to get the building back to productive use.

Currently, Madison County Schools maintain oversight of the Laurel School property. While closed since the end of the 2015 school year, upkeep of the facility cost the school system just over $30,000 last year, according to numbers from district officials. Insurance totals nearly $17,000, with a one-time investment of $8,400 in roof repairs also required to prevent leaks.

School officials expect the cost of maintaining the site to fall to around $21,000 in the coming school year.

In January, the Madison County Board of Education declared the nearly six-acre site as surplus property. State law then required the school board to offer the building to the county; commissioners have yet to take action on the facility.

“The county doesn’t have any interest in acquiring it except for the interest of you folks,” County Attorney Donny Laws told members of the Laurel Community Center Organization, Inc., a nonprofit formed by community residents. The group outlined a vision for the former school as a senior meal site, rec center, high-speed internet access point and more during a May meeting with commissioners.

Laws told the group that the county could sell the site through an upset or sealed bid process, lease the property to the group – as the county does with community centers in Marshall, Spring Creek, Ebbs Chapel and Beech Glen – or convey the property to a nonprofit. That potential transfer of the deed would come with restrictions that would require it to be used for the public good and would prohibit its sale.

“That method is only available to the county, not to the schools,” Laws said.

While board members of the nonprofit expressed interest in a short-term lease and/or acquiring the property outright, they voiced concern about the costs associated with the building, particularly its septic system. Designed to accommodate the constant water flow that came when school was in session, the system now requires an overhaul to operate under health department guidelines.

“The septic is really the ‘Catch-22,’” Commissioner Norris Gentry said. “Without the septic, the site is not useful.”

With the cost of maintaining insurance on the building also a worry, commissioners told the nonprofit not to expect too much financial help from the county to maintain the site. Currently, the county allocates $850 annually to community centers operating in the county.

“We’re not flush with cash; no pun intended, since we’re talking about a septic system here,” Commissioner Matthew Wechtel said.

Commissioners did agree to research the investment required to install a new septic system and will communicate findings to the group in the weeks ahead.

Keith Ray, who heads the nonprofit, expressed satisfaction with the meeting, citing a clearer understanding of how the county can help ensure the old building can be used in new ways as the key takeaway. “We’ve got a great community out in Laurel, and I know we’ll have a great community center,” Ray said.